Less than two weeks after winning RFA’s middleweight title, Kevin
Casey has signed a contract with the UFC and will take on Legacy
FC’s 185-pound kingpin Bubba Bush in a champion vs. champion bout
of sorts at UFC
175 in Las Vegas.

Sherdog.com spoke with RFA President Ed Soares about the
development.

“Kevin signing with the UFC signifies that we are doing something
right. He is now the sixth champion we have had that has found
himself fighting in the Octagon,” Soares said. “Not only are they
signing, but our guys are having success up there. People have said
to me ‘why are you letting them [UFC] take all your guys away?’ But
I don’t see it that way, I look at it as RFA being recognized as a
hub for developing talent.”

“King” has been busy in 2014, picking up a victory over Eddie
Mendez via TKO at RFA 12 and then following up that performance
with a knockout win against Andrew Sanchez at RFA 15. In between
those two bouts, Casey moonlit as a last-second replacement for
Vinny Malgalhaes at Metamoris 3.

His opponent is riding a four-fight win streak of his own and was
last in action on June 13. Bush has fought eight times under
Legacy’s banner and only tasted defeat once. “The Fightin’ Texas
Aggie” has an affinity for finishing fights, with only one of his
seven wins going the distance.

With Casey moving on, Soares’ says RFA will continue to do as it
usually does when booking title fights.

“The title is now vacant. We won’t rush into anything. We will
continue to build more guys at middleweight before any title shots
are awarded,” he said.